Lost in the Deep Blue Ocean
by bossy
Summary: On the way to Fisherman Island, Nami has revelations about what has happened, what could happen, and what it all means to her. Unfortunately, she does this after a bottle of ale...or fifteen.


A/N: I'm not sure this really needs a rating of M, but I'd rather be safe than sorry. Oh, and I know this doesn't really jive with the current events in the manga, but I started writing this before Christmas '08, and certain things hadn't happened yet. But I hope you enjoy it anyway.

**Lost in the Deep Blue Ocean**

No one had seen the navigator in several hours, which was generally unheard of when the crew was embarking on a new island in less than a day. The last anyone had seen of her was when she told them shortly after disembarking from Sabaody Archipelago, when she announced that she'd be in the library making a map of the massive mangrove forest. No one bothered to look for her until she missed lunch, and when Sanji took a meal to her in the library, she was not to be found. Thus led to the search of the ship for the navigator that had lasted for two hours without success.

"Maybe she fell off the ship?"

"No way! I can't believe my ears! Although I don't have any…Skull joke!"

"You idiot! You can't fall off the ship when it's underwater."

"Well, maybe she got sucked out or something."

"Shut up Marimo! She's somewhere on the ship. We just haven't looked everywhere."

"I built this ship, so I'm telling you that we _have_ looked everywhere."

"Perhaps Navigator-san just desires privacy."

"Why wouldn't she want to hang around us?"

"Amongst other things, you smell."

"Hey, I took a bath this week!"

"Be quiet!"

Everyone paused mid-argument to look down at the short reindeer.

"I can hear something," he told them, closing his eyes to concentrate. After a few moments, his eyes popped open and he ran towards the ladder that led down to the belly of the ship. "I can hear her."

Eager to see their navigator okay or to rag at her for disappearing on them, the rest of the crew followed Chopper down the ladders that lead to Usopp's factory. By the time they reached the Soldier Docking System, they could all hear her. They walked into the circular room and followed a trail of bottles that led to Channel 4. They could hear her singing to herself and laughing at how atrocious she sounded to herself.

"Oi, what's with all the bottles?" Usopp asked, kicking a few out of the way as he made his way into the Channel. Nami was sloshing around in the pool of water that would someday house a weapon once Franky decided what would best suit Sunny. Nami looked up at him and giggled, grabbing for a semi-filled bottle that floated in the pool with her.

"I got thirsty," she shrugged, immediately bursting into giggles. The giggling only intensified as her other crewmates also piled into the Channel to see the situation.

"So why are you swimming in your clothes down here?" Usopp asked, since no one else seemed willing to venture forth into conversation.

"I just felt the sudden urge to go swimming," she explained, lazily floating in the water. "And since I can't go out there to swim…"

Nami threw an empty bottle towards the outer hull of the ship. The bottle shattered on impact and thousands of shards of glass fell to the ground. Once again, Nami found this hilarious.

"And how many hours ago did you get the urge to have a drink?" Zoro muttered from the back. There had to be at least fifteen or so empty bottles littering the ground and pool area. Nami had once boasted that she hardly ever got tipsy from drinking, let alone drunk, and to see her in such a state of inebriation was more than a little odd.

With a splash, Luffy joined Nami in the pool. Though only about chest-deep, Luffy toppled under water almost immediately. Nami snickered for a moment at him before remembering that he couldn't swim and reached down to pull him up by an arm. He coughed and sputtered a little when he emerged, but still grinned at her.

"What are you smiling at?" she asked.

"Pool party!" he announced. It took her a moment to process what he had just said, and when she did, she laughed and dropped him. Lucky for Luffy, Usopp waded into the pool to pull him up just as Chopper jumped in donning his little floaties.

"Looks like Luffy needs floaties, too," Nami observed, barely getting the sentence out before erupting into a fit of laughter. It only worsened at the face of disapproval Luffy made in response.

"Despite her intoxication, Navigator-san seems to be enjoying herself," Robin observed right before heading out of the Channel. Zoro took one last look and snorted before following Robin out.

"Are you going to watch these three?" Sanji asked Usopp, lighting a cigarette. "I have to go start dinner."

"Oi, oi!" Usopp called after Sanji as he left. "Why do I get stuck babysitting?"

He received no answer and in desperation, Usopp looked to the other two people in the room who could relieve him of such a duty.

"Alas, I also am cursed to a life outside of water," Brooke lamented, bowing the giant afro. "But I would stay to see who wins the wet tee-shirt contest afterward. Though I can't 'see' anything since I do not have any eyes…Skull joke!"

As Brooke left also, Usopp dropped his head into the hand that was not holding Luffy above water. He then looked to his last resort.

"Sorry, bro," Franky said as he beat a hasty retreat. "I'll rust."

"You will not!" Usopp yelled after him, but knew it was pointless. In resignation, Usopp looked to Luffy, who was having a great time in the pool despite being held up by one arm. Chopper was floating circles around him as Nami searched the last of the bottles floating in the pool for any alcohol. Apparently coming up empty, she waded out of the pool and dripped the whole way out of the Channel and through the rest of the Soldier Docking room to the ladder. Usopp's other two charges soon grew bored and also made their way out of the pool. The two of them were out of the Soldier Docking room before Usopp made it out of the pool himself, and all of a sudden he realized he'd be the one to clean up the mess.

"Oi!" he called to an empty room. "This is not fair! I didn't even get to drink any of these."

Nami heard but ignored him since hadn't even made it up half the ladders. She was on her way to back to the library when the boys caught up with her.

"Nami, why are you wobbling like that?" Chopper asked as she swayed when she walked. "Are you dizzy? Your cheeks are pink, too. Do you have a fever?"

"No, Chopper," Nami corrected him. "I'm wasted. You don't need to worry about it."

"And Nami _never_ gets wasted," Luffy continued. "So I'm gonna hang around her until it goes away, 'cause I'll probably never see it happen again."

In the Aquarium bar, Nami turned to glare at Luffy but found it was too hard to while trying to concentrate on walking. She finally gave up on both and sat down on the bench that lined the aquarium bar, finding it quite hard to go up, whereas when she'd been going down towards the bottom level, she felt like she just floated. Chopper stood in front of her and took hold of her wrist with one hoof, reading her pulse. Luffy plopped down next to her but found the fish in the aquarium more entertaining than her at the moment.

"Nami, your pulse is racing," Chopper told her, sounding worried. "You stay here and rest while I go get my emergency kit."

Chopper skittered off leaving Nami annoyed slightly at his persistence that something was wrong. Didn't Zoro get this drunk on a daily basis? No one treated him like a Faberge egg.

Just to spite him, Nami stood and made her way down the ladders this time, with Luffy in tow, and back through the Docking Soldier System to the storage room ladder. Usopp was still picking up bottles and had swept the shattered glass into a pile. He didn't notice her pass so she just kept going, knowing he'd bother her about cleaning up after her later. As she began climbing the ladder up to the boy's bunks, Nami grew light-headed and simply sat down on the floor as Luffy popped through behind her. He gave her an odd look as she leaned back and stretched out onto the floor. He sat down next to her with his head cocked to the side as he stared at her and she stared back. Finally, she spoke.

"Luffy, get me a blanket."

"A blanket?" he repeated.

"I'm cold," she explained. Her clothes were still damp and her jaw chattered as she lay on the floor.

"Change your clothes and you won't be cold anymore," Luffy told her, still sitting.

"I'm too tired to climb anymore ladders," Nami whined, reaching over to lazily slap at his leg. She missed miserably in the weak attempt. "Get me a blanket."

"No," Luffy whined back. He did get up, but headed to the lockers instead. Nami groaned and averted her gaze as he stripped off his own wet clothes and changed into dry ones.

"Please?" she tried again. She got no response for a moment before a blanket landed haphazardly over her. Another moment later Luffy appeared over her to help her straighten the blanket out and sat down next to her again when finished. He stared at her for a time again before speaking up.

"If you're tired, you should go to bed," he told her.

"No," Nami growl-murmured in annoyance, then rolled onto her side where she didn't have to look at him. She stared at the wall and grew cross-eyed, so she closed her eyes against the dizzying effect. The next thing she knew, she was being lifted from the floor and carried to the ladder to the bedroom above. She placed her arms around his neck to hold on as he wavered a little as he began to climb. "What are you doing?"

"Putting you to bed," Luffy answered, having to try a few times to turn the knob. "You fell asleep on the floor."

"I did not," Nami obstinately denied.

"You were snoring," Luffy told her point blankly. She sighed in annoyance but didn't try to contradict him. He put her down, damp clothes and all on top of her bed. She didn't let go of her grip when he pulled back, so he lifted her arms over his head. She caught one of his hands with hers and would not let go. He looked down at her hand before looking at her face.

"Your hands are cold."

She ignored his comment and pulled on his hand close to her so he had to sit next to her on the bed.

"Will you stay with me until I fall asleep?" she asked.

He sighed as if she was keeping him from doing something else potentially more fun, but stayed put.

"Why are you drunk?"

Nami frowned at him. "Because I drank a lot."

"Yeah, but, why did you do that?"

"'Cause I was thirsty," she replied sarcastically. He sighed again, this time in frustration.

She must have fallen asleep because she felt him pull his hand from hers.

"Luffy," she whined, as he stood. He looked at her as though he was deciding whether he could get away with ditching her or not.

Apparently he was wise enough to realize if he did, he'd probably regret it later because he sat down on the floor next to her bed and rested his chin on the mattress with a big sigh. She reached out a hand again but he didn't offer one of his own in return, so she plopped her hand down on top of his head and made an attempt at ruffling his hair since his hat hung at his back. He once again gave her an annoyed look but made no attempt to move her hand away or his head. Gradually, her hand slipped from on top of his head down to his cheek and stayed there as she began to doze again.

But Luffy's question came forth again.

"Why are you drunk?"

She must have been mostly asleep when he said it because it sounded distant and muffled.

"I guess I did it because I'm afraid," she murmured, opening a bleary eye to look at him. Luffy looked surprised that she'd answered him.

"What are you afraid of?"

"The past, the future," she continued, never noticing, or possibly caring about the slur in her speech. "The present. Everything."

"Why?"

"So many bad things happened in the past," she told him, closing her eyes again. "Things that I can't change or fix, but still, they are things that affect my future."

"Fisherman Island."

Again, the words were muffled, but that didn't bother her as much as the fact that Luffy knew where her thoughts were leading. When did Luffy get so observant?

"Jinbei is there," she predicted. "And he's going to be waiting for me. For us."

"It'll be okay," Luffy assured her, clearer this time. "I'll make it okay."

Typical Luffy logic. It did make her feel a little better, but whether it was due to the booze or just because she let her guard down so rarely, tears still came. And in a moment, she was in his embrace.

"It'll be okay," he repeated, pulling her to the edge of the bed so he could wrap his arms around her from the floor. "Please don't cry."

She must have cried herself to sleep because when she opened her eyes to look at him again, he was asleep and half in the bed with her, one arm still wrapped around her. As stealthily as she could manage, she released herself from Luffy's embrace and left the ladies' dormitory. She still felt the urge to cry but squashed it, knowing that she'd neglected her duties for far too long, and if it weren't for Hachi guiding them down to Fisherman Island, she would have been in a panic about their current position. She went up to the observation deck and glanced out the porthole to see the fabled island come into view. Hachi looked to be wagering their passage with someone and she felt a pang in her heart for the octo-merman that once been part of the destruction in her past, now so eager to redeem himself.

"It seems we have arrived."

Nami turned around, somewhat startled that Robin had snuck up on her.

"We wondered if we should wake you before we made port," Robin relayed, indicating the rest of the crew and herself.

"We're stopping here?" Nami asked, unable to hide the astonishment in her voice.

"We were unable to procure supplies in Sabaody Archipelago," Robin reminded her. "We must get our supplies in order here if we are to make it to the next magnetic field."

"This is the least likely of places that we should be stopping," Nami snapped and immediately regretted it. "Sorry, I didn't mean to yell at you."

"I understand your reluctance to stop there, but—" Robin began.

"No, you don't understand," Nami interrupted, frustrated. More upset with herself than Robin and embarrassed at her behavior, she walked briskly out of the observation deck and nearly bulldozed Franky out of her way on her way to the aquarium. When they landed, because she now knew they were going to land whether she liked it or not, she was determined to be done gathering supplies before the water finished swishing around the boat.

"Nami-san, it is good to see you up and about—" Sanji started.

"I want the food supplies purchased and on the ship in one hour," Nami snapped. "Pass the word on to the others if they need supplies. If it's not on the ship in one hour, we're leaving it on the dock."

Sanji stared at her for a moment in awe or shock before shuffling out. "Of course, Nami-san."

Once again alone, she began to pace back and forth in front of the door. After what seemed like ages, Hachi burst through the door and nearly ran her over.

"Oh, sorry Nami," he stumbled, pulling up just short of stepping on her. "I found a place to dock that is not very populated, but you should still be able to buy the supplies you need."

"Thank you, Hachi," Nami quickly spoke. "I've already told the others that we're leaving in an hour. I want to spend as little time here as possible."

"But, the log pose won't set in an hour," Hachi warned her. "And I cannot go with you past Fisherman Island. Once you've cleared the island, you will have no direction."

"I plan to trade for a set log pose in town," Nami explained. "But I need you to make sure we're ready to sail once I get back."

"Sure, Nami," Hachi agreed, following her out onto the deck. Nami's first impression of Fisherman Island was unremarkable. It wasn't as scary or intimidating as she somewhat dreaded, but also, nothing struck her right away. Shrugging it off, she climbed down the ladder to the dock and immediately her eyes began searching for the most likely place to find a new log pose. She passed numerous shops that were just was routine and ordinary as the port itself.

'Well, Hachi did say that this part of the island is less populated,' Nami thought. 'The rest of the island probably isn't this dull.'

After quite a bit of searching, she finally found a shop that had navigational equipment for sale. Normally she would have taken time to look around for any rarities she could add to her collection of cartography equipment but once she entered the store her eyes only saw the log poses at the front counter. The merman behind the counter was some sort of fish type, once again unremarkable and unmemorable.

"I need a set log pose," she stated before she'd even made it to the counter. "The cheaper the better. I also have one to trade."

He seemed to want to haggle with her a little bit, but after a minute of her unbudging attitude, he gave in and sold her a half decent once for less than a hundred berries. New pose clasped on her wrist, she headed straight back to the ship, ready to find any stragglers and drag them back onto the ship by their ears. When she arrived, she was livid to find that everyone save Robin had left the ship and went 'exploring.'

"I'll kill them myself if they're causing trouble," she promised herself as she stalked back off the ship in search for them. They had a half an hour left before her announced departure but also knew that some, like Zoro and Luffy for example, would not make it back to the ship without being properly goaded. She passed Sanji and Usopp carrying back food and ordered them, much to their displeasure, to stay on the ship once they got there. Next she found Franky rummaging around in a raw materials shop and also told him to get his butt in gear. She knew she was being rude and probably did deserve the title of bitch as they muttered it under their breath, but Nami was determined to let Fisherman Island remain unremarkable in her mind.

Brooke was found sitting next to a ladies clothing boutique pretending to be dead as he watched ladies shop. She told him she'd give his afro a trim if he didn't get his bones back to the ship right away. He immediately followed her order and even without skin to give a facial expression, Nami knew her manner had surprised him. She caught up with Chopper browsing some odd looking medical tools and nearly pushed him out the door, insisting that as long as he had enough medical supplies to get them to the next island, he was done shopping and needed to go back to the ship. Chopper pouted but trudged back towards the ship anyway.

She had no idea where to find Luffy, but decided to look at the rowdiest bar for Zoro, and could only hope that Luffy had followed him. She did find Zoro, but not Luffy. He hadn't spotted her yet, busy arguing with the bartender about what kind of ale he wanted to drink. Nami got one step into the bar before a hand clamped over her mouth and then another around her neck. She was lifted backwards and out of the bar and quickly ushered into an alley. She had yet to see her abductor but could tell from the webbed hands that it was a merman.

"Someone wants to see you," was a gurgled hiss in her ear. "He has been waiting a long time to meet you. And he won't take no for an answer."

The hand holding her mouth released her, but the one around her neck tightened, preventing her from crying out loudly. "Too bad. I won't go. I'm leaving this island as soon as I find the rest of my crewmates."

"We know you are a smart human," her abductor continued. "We know you understand the principle that every action has a consequence. Do you want to know the consequence disobeying is?"

"I don't care," Nami ground out, feeling slightly light headed at the deprivation of oxygen. "There's nothing you can say that will make me stay here any longer than I have to."

"If you leave, the seal coat on your ship will spring a leak just outside of Fisherman Island," the voice threatened. "With the pressure of the water at that depth, it will not matter that half of your crew are devil users. Your nakama will all be crushed before they have a chance to drown."

'This can't be happening,' Nami thought to herself, feeling despair creep into her chest. 'I can't say no.'

"You will make port again in the next city," she was told. "You may bring anyone with you that you wish, but you must come. He will expect you no later than tomorrow morning. You will know where you need to go."

The hand around her neck disappeared and when she turned to face the opening of the alley, it was empty. Her hand massaged her sore neck as she once again entered the bar. Zoro saw her enter this time and quickly threw down the last of his ale.

"We're leaving," she informed him, though with less venom than usual. "Right now."

He fumbled a little, reaching into his pockets for money. Her patience shot by then and she quickly slammed a hundred berry bill on the bar.

"Now!" Nami yelled, stomping out of the bar at a fierce pace. Zoro caught up to her a few feet out of the bar.

"What the hell crawled up your—"

"Unless you _really_ want to know the answer to that question," she hissed, "stop right there."

Zoro fell silent as he followed her back to the ship. The only thing that had gone right so far that day is that Luffy had made it back to the ship by himself without incident. She barked the orders to set sail and pulled Hachi aside.

"I must stop in the next port," she whispered to him. His eyes widened and he looked ready to protest, but Nami caught him off. "I was given an invitation I was not allowed to refuse."

Hachi remained silent.

"I don't want them to know," Nami continued, indicating to the rest of the crew. "Do me this favor, Hachi. Tell them we need to stop for something. Anything. Make something up. But we have to stop, and I don't want any of them getting off the ship."

"Nami, I…" Hachi stumbled. She knew he wanted to argue with her, but he also knew why he couldn't. "I will do it."

"Thank you, Hachi," she whispered. For the first time in her life, Nami felt compelled to hug a merman. "Thank you."

True to his word, Hachi came up with some excuse about having to stop and pay passing fees. Nami sneaked off the ship and down to the docks. Her messenger had been true to his word; Nami knew instantly where to go. She trudged quickly through the town, forcing herself not to see anything or anyone but her destination. When she arrived, no one even hesitated in leading her inside. Her mental map told her that they were leading her to the middle of the building. They opened one side of a set of massive doors and indicated for her to enter alone.

"Come in, my dear. We have much to discuss."

She was alone in the room for all that she could see, aside from her host.

"Jinbei."

"You don't know how long I have been waiting to meet you," Jinbei began. "I think it has been nearly ten years since my once-apprentice Arlong told me of a young human child that was going to make him a map of the world's oceanic telemetry. I was intrigued, to say the least."

"I no longer work for Arlong," Nami managed to say. The truth was that she was terrified in a way that she hadn't been since Arlong had first arrived in her village so many years ago.

"Ah, but this is why I called you here today," Jinbei informed her. "So many years ago, you pledged yourself to Arlong's crew, did you not?"

Nami nodded. "But Arlong went to jail and his crew disbanded."

"You are partially correct," Jinbei told her. "Arlong did go to jail, but his crew has not disbanded. They came here; returned to my crew, where they belong."

'Please don't say it,' Nami prayed.

"As do you."

Nami's eyes closed, and with them, tears began to stream down her face.

"Arlong was originally a part of my crew," Jinbei continued. "Therefore everything that was his, by default, is mine. Including you."

"No," she managed to whisper. "I have a new crew now. I want to be with them."

"The Mugiwara Pirates," Jinbei guessed. "I have heard of them, obviously. Though I can't say I approve of them."

"They are my crew," Nami continued. "My nakama."

"You will remain here with me," Jinbei said. "These others, the ones you mistakenly refer to as your nakama, will be allowed unobstructed passage to the New World."

She was speechless. The offer Jinbei made was an extremely generous one; pointedly it was one she could not refuse.

"_If I'm gone for more than two hours, take off. Don't look back."_

She didn't know how long it took her to reach Jinbei's stronghold, but she knew that she wouldn't have to be gone much longer for Hachi to send her crew on their way. By the time any of her crew knew she was gone, there would be no way for them to reach her.

'I'm too far deep in this place,' Nami argued with herself. 'I can't get out if I try to escape. And I doubt Jinbei will let me run around as freely as Arlong did.'

"So, my dear," Jinbei interrupted her train of thought. "Shall I show you to your room?"

Panic overtook rational thought and Nami turned and bolted for the huge double doors. Her quickness and agility on her feet had her flying past the few guards she passed as she ran backwards through the mental map she'd made on her way in. Her legs carried her nearly half way through the city before they began to shake and threatened to give out. She slowed and eventually stopped, bending over to grab her knees as she huffed from lack of breath.

Not wanting to linger very long, Nami again began jogging towards the ship. She could see the larger mast come into view and she had a brief feeling of relief. It lasted for about ten steps when she cleared the next building and stopped dead in her tracks. The ship was in front of her, unobstructed and ready to sail, but it was what was in the water with the ship that stopped her: three mermen, all formally of Arlong's crew, hovered in the water next to the rudder.

Before she knew it, a hand took hold of her shoulder.

"You see, my dear?" Jinbei's voice hissed close to her ear. "Their fate lay in your hands. What will you choose?"

She briefly wondered how he'd caught up to her so quickly but pushed it aside as she assessed her options. She could scream. Any one of her nakama would know her voice and come rushing to her aid but once she took a moment to observe her surroundings, her hopes deflated. More mermen were poking their heads out of the water surrounding the ship, and though they'd appeared harmless and uninvolved before, every merman on Fisherman Island seemed to be staring at her. It was then she realized that every single merman on the island was a potential ally to Jinbei.

Thousands. Thousands of enemies, and every single one of them as adept to water as fish. Her nakama was no match.

Without a word, Nami bowed her head and turned away from Thousand Sunny. With his webbed hand still on her shoulder, Jinbei began directing her back to his stronghold.

"Oi! Nami!"

She felt herself pause in step at the sound of Luffy's voice, but the hand guiding her never faltered and pushed her farther into the city.

"Where are you going?"

Her cheeks felt wet, she suddenly realized and she began to pray that Hachi got them out to sea before they could do anything stupid. Due to the fact that no one was pursuing her as of yet, she had to believe that Hachi was somehow distracting them. If she was lucky, he was telling them that she was still on the ship and that it was time to go, and they'd believe him. If she was lucky, Luffy would believe that he'd been mistaken, and it wasn't her that was escorted away by the merman crime boss behind her.

It was disturbingly quiet as she trudged back to the stronghold. If her nakama were following her, they were being discreet enough to not be noticed. And her nakama were anything but discreet. She didn't even realize they'd made it back to the stronghold until she was being led through the maze-like hallways to a small room near the center of the building, on the highest level.

"Welcome home, my dear."

The tears streaming down her face were no longer silent. Loud sobs nearly muffled the sound of the door closing behind her followed by multiple locks being thrown into place. She sat on the edge of the bed that had been provided for her and cried in desperation. The room, though bigger than the one Arlong had given her so many years ago, felt like it had a suffocating hold on her. Like something was encircling her chest and squeezing the air out of her. The more she cried, the tighter her chest felt and the more suffocated she felt.

She cried so long that she lost track of time passing, so when she heard the locks disengaging on her door right before it was opened, it could have been an entire day.

"Your presence is required in the main hall," the gruff, gurgly voice told her. The merman sent to escort her held the door open for her and followed her very closely down the hallway. She entered the main hallway through a back door this time, coming up on the throne Jinbei sat in from the back. Her escort held her at the back of the room, out of sight as well as unable to see.

"At this time, I am willing to let all things pass," Jinbei was saying. "With the exception of this one, you are free to go on your way and do as you please in the New World. You must understand that it brings me great consequence to let you pass so easily. That is why you should kindly accept my offer and depart from this island without commotion—"

"Shut up!"

Nami's heart dropped at the shout of Luffy's voice that silenced the entire great hall.

"Give us back our nakama!"

The rest of the crew echoed his sentiment as Jinbei turned to her with a knowing grin.

"I do not think she wants to go with you," Jinbei chuckled, waving her towards him. "But I shall let you ask her yourself."

No. He wouldn't make her face her nakama and tell them to go, would he? When she didn't immediately move, the escort at her back pushed her towards Jinbei.

Her first full glimpse of the hall was ominous. Mermen of innumerable amounts lined the walls, save the great doors where most of her nakama stood. Luffy stood in the center of the great hall, in between Jinbei and a fallen Hachi. Nami stared at the octo-merman that lay still on the ground, noting how he appeared to have been beaten senseless. She couldn't help but feel responsible for the beating, knowing that Hachi would never have come near this port if it weren't for her.

"Tell them, my dear," Jinbei said, interrupting her thoughts. "Tell them the truth: you wish to stay with me."

Nami looked Jinbei in the eyes and scowled. "No. I will not lie to my nakama."

Jinbei looked startled at her answer. Nami switched her gaze to Luffy.

"I do not wish to stay here," Nami said, walking toward Luffy. "I want nothing more than to go with my nakama and continue on your journey."

Luffy grinned at her and held out his hand to her. She took it, but did not return his smile. She stepped close, so close that she stood toe to toe with him.

"But I can't," she finished, staring at his chin since that's were her eyes leveled off due to the height difference between them. "My part of the journey ends here."

"No—" Luffy started, but was interrupted.

"Finish your journey," Nami told him. "Become the Pirate King. Become King and come back here, then I will go with you again."

"But," Luffy began, a whine in his voice, "I can't become the Pirate King without you."

"You can do anything, Luffy," she whispered, raising her free hand to his cheek. The rest of his body went perfectly still; only his head moved slightly to look down at her and meet her eyes.

"But…"

Nami felt his breath gently spill across her face as the desperate word fell from his lips. Her gaze fell there, and she shifted her weight to her toes. Raising her heels from the floor, she gained enough height to press her lips against his gently. It was only for a moment, and she felt Luffy lean in to respond she immediately pulled back.

"Goodbye, Luffy."

The sound of her heels clicking on the floor was the only sound in the great hall as she retreated to the back of the hall. She did not look at Jinbei as she passed him, but knew he must have had a pleased look on his face.

"I'll buy her from you."

Nami stopped mid-step and turned around in wide-eyed shock.

"How much?" Luffy asked. The look on his face was serious, but the rest of her nakama shared the look of astonishment she wore.

"How much?" Jinbei repeated, chuckling. "Boy, I'm afraid that she is priceless. The best you could do is rent her, and in that case she would still not be able to leave this stronghold."

Luffy audibly gritted his teeth as the growling response fell from his lips. "How much?"

"Two hundred million berries for one night."

The strength gave out in Nami's legs and she fell to her knees.

"How much to buy her?" Luffy insisted.

"I told you, she's priceless," Jinbei repeated, with some dissatisfaction in his voice. He seemed to pace a little bit before taking on a wicked grin. "But I suppose that if I _had_ to put a price tag on her, it would be one billion."

To this, Luffy had no response.

"Surprised?" Jinbei taunted. "I don't see why. Humans tried to sell a mermaid for half that sum not so long ago. Wouldn't it stand to pass that beneath the ocean, where humans are the rarity, that one of such great intelligence and skill should sell for such a price?"

Still, Luffy was silent.

"Take her to her room," Jinbei ordered, turning toward her. "Since it's evident that we're done here with her."

A gruff hand pulled her by the arm to her feet and led her out of the great hall. She neither saw the journey back to her cell, nor heard the locks fall into place as she walked to the edge of her bed and sat down to cry. Minutes or hours could have passed as she cried herself into exhaustion. Her eyes began to droop as she slipped from the bed to the floor to her haunches, then down to her butt. She heard the door open and steps coming toward her but paid no mind until they stopped in front of her. She just could not grasp the fact that there was a pair of sandals attached to a pair of feet in front of her. A hand appeared in front of her face, reaching out to pull her up.

She did not take the hand, but looked dumbly up at its owner in disbelief. Luffy stared back for a moment before leaning down and pulling her to her feet.

"Luffy, what are you doing here?" she whined, leaning against the bed for support.

"I bought you," he stated, pulling her close to him and into his embrace.

"You don't have enough money to buy me," Nami denied. "You only have enough for—"

"One night," Luffy finished, cupping her cheeks with his hands. He pulled her face to his and kissed her, determined not to let go again. She raised her hands to fist them into his vest before roughly pushing him away. She succeeded in breaking the kiss but he did not relinquish his grip. Instead, Luffy used one hand to hold her at her back and pressed up against him so her hands were trapped immobile between them.

"Why?" she whispered before he could block her use of her mouth again. He rubbed his nose against hers, as if contemplating answering her question. If he was, he decided against it and kissed her again, much deeper than before. She felt her breath be taken away at the sudden passion he imbued into her. Weak legs refused to support her ands he kept leaning back until the bed caught her. Luffy briefly let go of her again, letting her gently lay back onto the covers alone long enough to let his vest slide from his shoulders. He leaned over her, letting one hand run up her thigh and the other scooping her underneath her back. As he climbed on the bed as well, he pulled her more onto it so he could rest himself on top of her more comfortably.

She attempted to ask him again why he had showed up and tried to kiss her worries away, but he would not let up. His lips were on hers again and she was forced again into sensory stimulation. The hand that had been massaging her thigh moved its way up to her stomach and caught the hem of her tank top. It lifted to her ribs and stayed put for the moment as he paused to run his hand over her smooth abdomen. She nearly bit him as he hit a ticklish spot and they broke apart temporarily, and in that moment he used both hands to strip the tank top completely off and toss it aside.

Their chests bare against one another combined with the sensation of Luffy tracing her collar bone with his lips one again stole away her breath. She finally shook the initial shock that had paralyzed her limbs so far and one hand ran across his shoulders. The other came up in the back of his neck and clutched the hair at the base of his skull. When Luffy's hands moved down from caressing her chest to pull at the top of her skirt, she tried to sit up, but his lips replaced his hands at her chest and she was easily coaxed back down.

When he broke contact again it was to look down at her skirt, which he was having some difficulty removing. She did manage to sit up while he tried to figure out how her skirt worked and she grabbed his hands to still them. He looked up at her and with the chance to finally ask again, to ask him why he was there and what he thought he was doing, but found she no longer wanted to. With him looking at her so full of confidence and purpose, she knew she had no need to question his motives because they were completely clear and without doubt.

She released his hands and they moved back to fiddling with her skirt. She was suddenly struck with the gravity of the situation, realizing that these were the last moments she would spend with Luffy, and that the next time his grin would cross her vision could be years from right now. She let go of every thought and every reservation and took hold of Luffy's face, pulling his lips to meet hers. If he was surprised, he didn't show it, joining in with a feverous pace, especially after he got her skirt off. His pants were off with one hand a few seconds later and his body covered hers instantly.

She made love to him with reckless abandon, determined to memorize every plane and crevice, every scar on him. Luffy seemed to have the same plan, moving up and down her body over and over, but never strayed for long, always returning to kiss her. Hours or days could have passed and she knew that soon, someone would come to part them, but Nami didn't want to ever let go. When the knock at the door finally came, she felt tears instantly well and pour from her eyes, but for some odd reason, Luffy was smiling at her. His grin never left his face as he put his clothes back on and pulled her, wrapped up in a sheet, into his embrace again.

"Time to go," he whispered near her ear. "No more crying."

She looked up at him in confusion and he kissed her forehead and let go of her. She wanted to chase after him as he walked to the door but squashed the thought and instead stared at her bare feet sticking out from beneath the sheet. She scrunched her eyes shut when she heard the doorknob turn, biting her bottom lip to keep it from quivering.

"Come on, Nami."

Nami looked up and her jaw dropped. Outside the door stood the rest of her nakama, somewhat bloodied but all smiling at her. She looked to Luffy for some sort of explanation.

"You, Nami, of all people, should know better," Luffy answered. "You are our nakama, and we will not part with our nakama for anything. Even if you don't want to go with us, we won't leave you here."

Tears were streaming down her face again but it was not from any kind of sorrow or physical pain. Yes, she should have known better. She took a step towards him, reaching for his outstretched hand—

—and woke up.

She frantically looked around the dark room, wiping at her wet and sleepy eyes to make sure she was really seeing what she was seeing. She was on Sunny, in the women's quarters, alone in her bed. She took a slow breath as she realized that her clothes and hair were slightly damp.

'A dream?' she thought in disbelief. 'It couldn't have been. It was _so_ real.'

Still a little shaken, she whipped her covers off and made her way to the aquarium bar. Before she even got there she could hear her nakama interacting loudly. She slipped into the room silently and immediately went to a port hole. They were still surrounded by ocean with no underwater island in sight and she let out an audible sigh.

"Oi, Nami, you're up," Usopp greeted her cheerily, pulling her attention away from the ocean. He pointed at her with a serious look. "You owe me for cleaning up after you."

"What was the grand total, Usopp?" Zoro asked, unable to hide the smirk from his face. "Twenty three bottles of ale scattered across the ship?"

"Little sis knows how to drink!" Franky praised loudly, pumping a fist in the air.

"I used to be able to drink that much, but it would always go right through me," Brooke lamented. "But then again, it still does. Skull joke!"

"Nami, why didn't you stay here in the aquarium bar like I told you?" Chopper asked.

"I guess I was tired," she answered quietly. She still felt disoriented and fuzzy.

"Indeed," Robin commented. "Navigator-san has been asleep for almost half a day."

"Really?" Nami whispered, a little surprised.

"You must be famished, Nami-san," Sanji appraised. "Your color is so pale. If you like, I shall make something for you to tide you until lunch."

"Thank you," she accepted, sitting down at the table next that encircled the giant mast. Zoro was giving her an eye of scrutiny.

"How can you drink that much and not have a hangover?" he asked seriously. Nami half smiled as she picked at an invisible spot on the table.

"It's a talent," she finally answered, earning a few laughs. It was then that she noticed that their captain was missing. "Where's Luffy?"

"Upstairs," Usopp answered, tinkering with a gadget. The rest of the crew had reentered into whatever conversation they'd been in before she'd arrived, so she left her seat and went up the ladder to the library, hoping to catch him when he came out of the bathroom. At least, that's where she assumed he was.

She was taken aback to find him simply sitting in the library, looking through the double reinforced windows at the ocean. The dark blue ocean cast a pale blue against his skin as he just stared out the window into the thing that 'hated' him.

"Luffy, what are you doing?" she asked, somewhat bewildered.

He turned and immediately grinned at her. "You woke up!"

His eyes locking onto hers sent a small shock through her body as she recalled the end of the dream she'd just had.

"Of course I did," Nami answered, coming to sit down next to him. Silence was their companion as she looked out the window with him, trying to determine to find out what had captured his attention. He had returned his gaze to the empty blue and she thought back to her dream.

It was hard to determine when she had actually fallen asleep. The entire conversation she'd had after he'd put her in her bed could have been part of the dream, but some of it was too clear for her to believe that. Another part of her wondered if that conversation had been what triggered the dream. Yes, she'd been drinking in anticipation of landing at Fisherman Island, but she doubted that was the reason for the dream.

"What were you dreaming?" Luffy asked suddenly.

Nami couldn't speak for a moment. "I…I don't remember. Why?"

He seemed disappointed with her answer. "You were crying in your sleep. It was weird."

"Oh," was her response. She thought for a moment. "Luffy, how long did you stay with me?"

"Until you stopped crying."

That was an evasive answer if she'd ever heard one. "_How long_ did you stay with me?"

He looked like he was about to get in trouble. "You just didn't stop crying for a long time and you were asleep and I didn't know what to do so I just stayed there."

She barely understood his rushed answer. He must have mistaken her quietness for anger.

"I'm sorry I stayed all night but I just didn't want to leave you by yourself when you were crying," he apologized, wincing as though he expected to be clobbered by her fist.

Instead, she leaned over and hugged him. "Thank you for staying with me, Luffy."

After a moment of shock, Luffy relaxed when he realized he wasn't going to be clogged in the head. He wrapped a loose arm around her and returned the hug. When she looked into his eyes and he grinned, she felt that same shock roll through her body. She pulled away as she attempted to cover her blush, heading for the ladder to go down to the Aquarium Bar. Where the intimate moments she'd shared with Luffy in the dream had come from, she had no idea, and she began to wonder if she'd ever be able to look him in the eyes again without blushing.

"It's going to be okay, you know."

Nami broke from her train of thought to look at Luffy. He returned the gaze and she felt the blush renew.

"We're going to get through Fisherman Island okay," he reiterated. A small smile came to her face as she looked down at the floor, understanding maybe a little bit where those feelings in the dream had come from.

"You should know, Nami," Luffy continued. "You are my nakama. And I won't I won't let someone take my nakama from me. None of us will."

"Yeah," she agreed, looking up at him with both a blush and a little more confidence in her eyes. "I know."

**END**

A/N: Please let me know what you think. I'm truly curious. P.S. Thanks to RyougaZell for pointing out that I can't spell one of the most important words in the whole manga.


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